LIVE OAK, FL — Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park is pleased to announce Suwannee Roots Revival’s music schedule. This family friendly festival includes four days of music, camping, campground pickin’ and takes place in Live Oak, Florida October 12-15, 2017. Set in the midst of 800 acres of Spanish moss-draped oak and cypress trees along the Suwannee River, the venue is a playground for endless activities such as swimming, canoeing, kayaking, disc golf, and biking.

With multiple stages (Amphitheater Stage, The Porch Stage, the Dance Stage Tent) Suwannee Roots Revival is jampacked with stellar music and dance! Workshops and performances will also be going on all day in the Music Hall and on the Music Farmer’s Stage on Friday and Saturday with a variety of performers set to play the festival.

Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn perform on the Amphitheater Stage Thursday night in between sets from Chatham County Line and The Revelers.Friday highlights Peter Rowan Dharma Blues featuring Jack Casady as well as the other end of the spectrum with Mother’s Finest, a funk rock band founded in Atlanta in the early 1970s. The Wood Brothers, Steep Canyon Rangers, Donna the Buffalo, and Willie Sugarcapps are sure to excite the crowd on Saturday which also features a special set of Guy Clark music presented by Verlon Thompson and Shawn Camp.

The festival pays tribute and remembers our beloved artists who have passed on with our memorial Vassar Sunday. There will be a special late-afternoon set to honor the amazing and legendary Col. Bruce Hampton. Rev. Jeff Mosier put together the “Symphony of Gratitude” to honor Col. Bruce Hampton, who was a dear friend of and veteran performer at Spirit of Suwannee for a couple of decades.

“I’m so glad and looking forward to being a part of a group of former veteran ear soldiers and friends mostly from Col. Bruce Hampton Projects (Madrid Express, Pharaoh’s Kitchen, Quark Alliance) as we lead ourselves and the audience through a unique ‘Symphony of Gratitude’ for the influence and outfluence of the man himself.” Rev Jeff Mosier says, “Suwannee was one of his favorite places on earth to play music, and we hope in some unique way to bring about the heartfelt love that we all have for Bruce. Please join us! Many surprises assured. A definite don’t wanna miss moment.”

Returning to the stage on Sunday are Steep Canyon Rangers, Jim Lauderdale, and Verlon Thompson. Nation of Two, Quartermoon, Sloppy Joe, and Grandpa’s Cough Medicine also perform on Sunday and Donna the Buffalo will close out the festival and is sure to bring up some special guests!

There will also be Permaculture Action Day Workshop to kick of the festival on Thursday from 10am – 1pm called “The Low Maintenance Food Forest.” Space is limited. Sign up to participate at SuwanneeRootsRevival.com/actionday.

Signed and numbered posters with the official festival artwork (above) by Marci Davis will be available for purchase at Festival Merchandise Tent.

Tickets are on sale now online. Kids age 12 and under are invited to join for free when accompanied by a parent or legal guardian who buys a multi-day ticket. There are also military and student discounts available. For more information, the full schedule, and tickets, please visit www.suwanneerootsrevival.com/tickets.

THE ASHEVILLE HOLIDAY HANG HITS THE ROAD
SHOWS IN THE SOUTHEASTFEATURING:
TOWN MOUNTAIN AND AMANDA ANNE PLATT & THE HONEYCUTTERSThe Holiday Hang is an event focused on highlighting talent from the Asheville music community, while raising awareness and donating partial proceeds to Feeding America food banks in each city

ASHEVILLE, NC — Town Mountain and Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters, two stellar bands from Asheville, North Carolina, are teaming up for the Asheville Holiday Hang as a run of shows in the Southeast, sponsored by New Belgium Brewing Company. Ashvegas’ Caleb Calhoun calls them, “a match made in heaven.”

“Over the past few years, New Belgium and Town Mountain have forged a relationship that goes well beyond making great music and good beer. The partnership has been one that ties to both organizations philanthropic roots at a time of year where people need it the most, the holidays,” says New Belgium Brewing Employee Owner, Trey Wheeler. New Belgium Brewing Company will be running specials at each of the shows and adding to the financial donation to MANNA FoodBank.

Town Mountain says, “For us the holiday season seems like a great time to celebrate playing music with friends as well as giving back to the community that has supported us through the years.” The Asheville Holiday Hang originated as a holiday benefit in Asheville and is heading into its 6th year with the hometown Asheville show taking place at The Orange Peel for the first time. Both bands and The Orange Peel are teaming up and donating 20% of ticket sales from that show to MANNA FoodBank!

MANNA FoodBank is a private, not-for-profit service organization, that links the food industry with over 200 partner agencies in 16 counties of WNC. MANNA is an acronym and stands for Mountain Area Nutritional Needs Alliance. They are a member of Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization. For 35 years, Feeding America has responded to the hunger crisis in America by providing food to people in need through a nationwide network of food banks with the motto, “Together we can solve hunger.”

“MANNA is excited to partner with Town Mountain again for the fifth consecutive year. Their Holiday Hang show has become a ‘Must See’ holiday tradition for dozens of fans in our MANNA community.” Alisa Hixson, Director Corporate Engagement & Signature Events at MANNA FoodBank, says,”Their support has provided for over 6,000 meals in WNC and their desire to keep giving back to their community epitomizes the mindset of the Asheville community. They’re a powerhouse of musicians harnessing their talent to help their neighbors, the perfect holiday story!”

Last year, Town Mountain paired with The Honeycutters and decided to bring the Holiday Hang on the road to other cities they both frequent and have grown friendships and fans in. The tradition continues this year and are excited to expand the scope of the Holiday Hang with a longer run of shows through the Southeast including Rocky Mount, Virginia, Greer and Charleston, South Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia, and Charlotte and Raleigh, North Carolina.

Not only is the event traveling to additional cities, but with the help of Feeding America (of which MANNA is a part of) the bands are donating partial proceeds from each show to a food bank from that area.

Town Mountain and Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters Family Holiday Photo 2017

Town Mountain and The Honeycutters have long been close friends and each band has a different sound to offer The Holiday Hang. Both have their own spin on what Americana is today. You’ll be sure to hear bluegrass, country, and rock influences coming from each band. As in years past there will be a jam at the end of each night where they join together in the collaborative spirit of the Asheville music scene.

“On the surface, a joint tour between the bluegrass combo Town Mountain and the alt-country band The Honeycutters might seem like an odd fit. Town Mountain’s dizzying all-acoustic instrumental skills and tight vocal harmonies recall the great early bluegrass groups like The Stanley Brothers or Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys, while The Honeycutters’ rougher brand of twangy heartbreak is perfect for the honky-tonk,” says Greenville Journal’s Vincent Harris.

“We just go back a long way in the Asheville music scene; we’re friends in that way. And I think that we’re both bands with roots in more traditional forms of music. We can be put into genres, but at the same time, ‘Americana’ describes what both of us do,” Platt says in an interview with the Greenville Journal. “Obviously, Town Mountain plays bluegrass and The Honeycutters have origins in classic country, but we’re both very song-oriented. Town Mountain has three great songwriters that share the songwriting duties, and in The Honeycutters I’m all about the song.”

Groove-heavy and Danceable,
Donna The Buffalo Announce Fall, NYE, and Winter Tour!Music Video For “Across The Way” Unveiled“This is what 21st century Americana sounds like, a little bit of this and that from anywhere wrapped up into a poignant, jamming dance reel, a place where the past and history meet easily in the immediate now and everybody feels like dancing.” —All Music Guide

ASHEVILLE, NC — Donna the Buffalo is delighted to release a music video for their original song “Across The Way” along with a slew of tour dates for this Fall and Winter! The song breathes fresh air with lyrics written by Jeb Puryear, “Do you think that a smile matters… Do you think a song can change the world… If you do then let it play… All these things happen… Across the way… Do you believe in magic… I do… Every day… It’s right where you’re standing… Across the way.”

Known as one of the most dynamic and determined bands continuously touring America for nearly thirty years, Donna the Buffalo has created a community environment at their shows through their distinctive, groove-heavy, and danceable music. With roots in old time fiddle music that evolved into a soulful electric American mix infused with elements of cajun/ zydeco, rock, folk, reggae, and country, Donna’s music often contains social and moral responsibility as core beliefs, and they are just simply fun to get out and celebrate life with.

Donna the Buffalo is excited to announce their Fall and Winter upcoming tour dates. They’ll be in the NorthEast in mid-September before heading south for a few shows including a performance at the historic Bijou Theatre in Knoxville, Tennessee and Deep Water Soul Fest in Hot Springs, North Carolina and their very own Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival in Pittsboro, North Carolina. In mid-October they return to Spirit of Suwannee Music Park in northern Florida for the Suwannee Roots Revival before returning north for shows in Binghamton and Tarrytown, New York.

In November they bring their new bus out west for shows in Fort Collins and Nederland, Colorado, then on to the Moab Folk Festival in Utah, as well as appearance at the Musical Instruments Museum in Phoenix, Arizona. They’ll travel up the coast of California for six shows including Pappy and Harriet’s in Pioneertown and the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco. Mid-month on they explore the NorthWest a bit more with shows in Eugene, Seattle, Portland, and Missoula. The band returns home and has a few shows in New York State in early December, along with a show at the new Boston City Winery!

Donna the Buffalo’s New Year’s run brings them back to Florida starting off December 29 at Ponte Vedra Concert Hall and then two nights (Including New Year’s Eve) at Skipper’s Smokehouse in Tampa. After a day of rest on New Year’s Day, they loop through Key West, Boca Raton, Orlando, Charleston, and Saxapahaw, NC.

Their Winter tour has more to be announced and already includes shows in Washington DC, Charlottesville, Atlanta, Charlotte, Saranac Lake, Buffalo, and Pittsburgh. Stay tuned for more dates to be added → www.donnathebuffalo.com/on-the-road.